Bug FAQHoney Locust Moth
Syssphinx bicolor · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Saturniidae
Source: Wikipedia
The honey locust moth has a wingspan of about 5-7 cm and its wings range from grayish to orange-brown with variable black spots and sometimes pink shading. It produces three generations each year, flies from April to September, and overwinters as a chrysalis.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The forewing may have a white kidney-shaped spot that can be double, single, or absent.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Wingspan ranges from 4.7 to 6.7 cm (1.9 to 2.6 in).
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is mainly found in woodlands.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Caterpillars feed on honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos). They also feed on Kentucky coffee tree (Gymnocladus dioicus).
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
There are three broods per year; the first adults are grayish, the second yellow-orange brown, and the third darker with more spots. The species overwinters in the chrysalis stage.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are on the wing from April through September.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It can be confused with the bisected honey locust moth, which is slightly larger, has a straighter postmedial line reaching the wing tip, and lacks the white reniform spot.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 26 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Ohio, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What trees does the honey locust moth feed on?
Its larvae eat honey locust and Kentucky coffee trees.
Source: Wikipedia
How many generations does this moth have each year?
It produces three broods annually, each with distinct wing colors.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Saturniidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syssphinx_bicolor
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-24.